Judges 20

About Judges Judges describes a repeating cycle in Israel: turning from God, oppression, crying out, and rescue by a judge.

Then all the children of Israel went out, and the congregation was gathered together as one man, from Dan even to Beersheba, with the land of Gilead, unto the LORD in Mizpeh.SelectedJudges 20:1Ask

And the chief of all the people, even of all the tribes of Israel, presented themselves in the assembly of the people of God, four hundred thousand footmen that drew sword.SelectedJudges 20:2Ask

(Now the children of Benjamin heard that the children of Israel were gone up to Mizpeh.) Then said the children of Israel, Tell us, how was this wickedness?SelectedJudges 20:3Ask

And the Levite, the husband of the woman that was slain, answered and said, I came into Gibeah that belongeth to Benjamin, I and my concubine, to lodge.SelectedJudges 20:4Ask

And the men of Gibeah rose against me, and beset the house round about upon me by night, and thought to have slain me: and my concubine have they forced, that she is dead.SelectedJudges 20:5Ask

And I took my concubine, and cut her in pieces, and sent her throughout all the country of the inheritance of Israel: for they have committed lewdness and folly in Israel.SelectedJudges 20:6Ask

Behold, ye are all children of Israel; give here your advice and counsel.SelectedJudges 20:7Ask

And all the people arose as one man, saying, We will not any of us go to his tent, neither will we any of us turn into his house.SelectedJudges 20:8Ask

But now this shall be the thing which we will do to Gibeah; we will go up by lot against it;SelectedJudges 20:9Ask

And we will take ten men of an hundred throughout all the tribes of Israel, and an hundred of a thousand, and a thousand out of ten thousand, to fetch victual for the people, that they may do, when they come to Gibeah of Benjamin, according to all the folly that they have wrought in Israel.SelectedJudges 20:10Ask

So all the men of Israel were gathered against the city, knit together as one man.SelectedJudges 20:11Ask

And the tribes of Israel sent men through all the tribe of Benjamin, saying, What wickedness is this that is done among you?SelectedJudges 20:12Ask

Now therefore deliver us the men, the children of Belial, which are in Gibeah, that we may put them to death, and put away evil from Israel. But the children of Benjamin would not hearken to the voice of their brethren the children of Israel:SelectedJudges 20:13Ask

But the children of Benjamin gathered themselves together out of the cities unto Gibeah, to go out to battle against the children of Israel.SelectedJudges 20:14Ask

And the children of Benjamin were numbered at that time out of the cities twenty and six thousand men that drew sword, beside the inhabitants of Gibeah, which were numbered seven hundred chosen men.SelectedJudges 20:15Ask

Among all this people there were seven hundred chosen men lefthanded; every one could sling stones at an hair breadth, and not miss.SelectedJudges 20:16Ask

And the men of Israel, beside Benjamin, were numbered four hundred thousand men that drew sword: all these were men of war.SelectedJudges 20:17Ask

And the children of Israel arose, and went up to the house of God, and asked counsel of God, and said, Which of us shall go up first to the battle against the children of Benjamin? And the LORD said, Judah shall go up first.SelectedJudges 20:18Ask

And the children of Israel rose up in the morning, and encamped against Gibeah.SelectedJudges 20:19Ask

And the men of Israel went out to battle against Benjamin; and the men of Israel put themselves in array to fight against them at Gibeah.SelectedJudges 20:20Ask

And the children of Benjamin came forth out of Gibeah, and destroyed down to the ground of the Israelites that day twenty and two thousand men.SelectedJudges 20:21Ask

And the people the men of Israel encouraged themselves, and set their battle again in array in the place where they put themselves in array the first day.SelectedJudges 20:22Ask

(And the children of Israel went up and wept before the LORD until even, and asked counsel of the LORD, saying, Shall I go up again to battle against the children of Benjamin my brother? And the LORD said, Go up against him.)SelectedJudges 20:23Ask

And the children of Israel came near against the children of Benjamin the second day.SelectedJudges 20:24Ask

And Benjamin went forth against them out of Gibeah the second day, and destroyed down to the ground of the children of Israel again eighteen thousand men; all these drew the sword.SelectedJudges 20:25Ask

Then all the children of Israel, and all the people, went up, and came unto the house of God, and wept, and sat there before the LORD, and fasted that day until even, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the LORD.SelectedJudges 20:26Ask

And the children of Israel enquired of the LORD, (for the ark of the covenant of God was there in those days,SelectedJudges 20:27Ask

And Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, stood before it in those days,) saying, Shall I yet again go out to battle against the children of Benjamin my brother, or shall I cease? And the LORD said, Go up; for to morrow I will deliver them into thine hand.SelectedJudges 20:28Ask

And Israel set liers in wait round about Gibeah.SelectedJudges 20:29Ask

And the children of Israel went up against the children of Benjamin on the third day, and put themselves in array against Gibeah, as at other times.SelectedJudges 20:30Ask

And the children of Benjamin went out against the people, and were drawn away from the city; and they began to smite of the people, and kill, as at other times, in the highways, of which one goeth up to the house of God, and the other to Gibeah in the field, about thirty men of Israel.SelectedJudges 20:31Ask

And the children of Benjamin said, They are smitten down before us, as at the first. But the children of Israel said, Let us flee, and draw them from the city unto the highways.SelectedJudges 20:32Ask

And all the men of Israel rose up out of their place, and put themselves in array at Baaltamar: and the liers in wait of Israel came forth out of their places, even out of the meadows of Gibeah.SelectedJudges 20:33Ask

And there came against Gibeah ten thousand chosen men out of all Israel, and the battle was sore: but they knew not that evil was near them.SelectedJudges 20:34Ask

And the LORD smote Benjamin before Israel: and the children of Israel destroyed of the Benjamites that day twenty and five thousand and an hundred men: all these drew the sword.SelectedJudges 20:35Ask

So the children of Benjamin saw that they were smitten: for the men of Israel gave place to the Benjamites, because they trusted unto the liers in wait which they had set beside Gibeah.SelectedJudges 20:36Ask

And the liers in wait hasted, and rushed upon Gibeah; and the liers in wait drew themselves along, and smote all the city with the edge of the sword.SelectedJudges 20:37Ask

Now there was an appointed sign between the men of Israel and the liers in wait, that they should make a great flame with smoke rise up out of the city.SelectedJudges 20:38Ask

And when the men of Israel retired in the battle, Benjamin began to smite and kill of the men of Israel about thirty persons: for they said, Surely they are smitten down before us, as in the first battle.SelectedJudges 20:39Ask

But when the flame began to arise up out of the city with a pillar of smoke, the Benjamites looked behind them, and, behold, the flame of the city ascended up to heaven.SelectedJudges 20:40Ask

And when the men of Israel turned again, the men of Benjamin were amazed: for they saw that evil was come upon them.SelectedJudges 20:41Ask

Therefore they turned their backs before the men of Israel unto the way of the wilderness; but the battle overtook them; and them which came out of the cities they destroyed in the midst of them.SelectedJudges 20:42Ask

Thus they inclosed the Benjamites round about, and chased them, and trode them down with ease over against Gibeah toward the sunrising.SelectedJudges 20:43Ask

And there fell of Benjamin eighteen thousand men; all these were men of valour.SelectedJudges 20:44Ask

And they turned and fled toward the wilderness unto the rock of Rimmon: and they gleaned of them in the highways five thousand men; and pursued hard after them unto Gidom, and slew two thousand men of them.SelectedJudges 20:45Ask

So that all which fell that day of Benjamin were twenty and five thousand men that drew the sword; all these were men of valour.SelectedJudges 20:46Ask

But six hundred men turned and fled to the wilderness unto the rock Rimmon, and abode in the rock Rimmon four months.SelectedJudges 20:47Ask

And the men of Israel turned again upon the children of Benjamin, and smote them with the edge of the sword, as well the men of every city, as the beast, and all that came to hand: also they set on fire all the cities that they came to.SelectedJudges 20:48Ask

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Judges 20

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